CMS said that eMedicare was aimed at reducing the burden of paperwork so as to make Medicare more efficient. CMS notes it might take time to determine if these revised portals serve beneficiaries better or makes the system run more smoothly

Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI) has reported an operating income gain of $317 million for fiscal year 2018, a 53% increase over the previous year. Despite its income gains, CHI did have trouble with admissions in fiscal 2018

A recent Navigant study investigated for-profit and nonprofit provider networks and discovered that the average operating margin declined by almost 39% over the same time span, from 4.15% in 2015 to 2.56% in 2017.

At the reporters-only event two weeks ago, Boehler discussed the focus from CMMI and CMS on allowing the consumer to drive the system through transparent and interoperable initiatives to create a competitive marketplace and incentivize patients to make the best choices for themselves

According to a recent Moody’s report, 28.4% of nonprofit hospital experienced operating losses, an increase from 16.5% in 2016. Also, 59% of providers reported lower absolute operating cash flow, which was more than double the 24% noted in 2015.

According to a Crowe report, hospitals with insourced revenue cycles have a lower rate of point-of-service collections from patients than outsourcing hospitals. However, hospitals that outsourced revenue cycles wait on average 33 days longer to collect balance payments from patients.

72% of providers concede that they or their staff usually refer to the same provider for a specialty rather than figuring out whether there's another provider with more specific expertise or who has an earlier appointment

Blockchain enthusiasm is currently increasing, and organizations don’t want to left behind if valid use cases are discovered. Approximately 40% of respondents say their organization will invest at least $5 million in blockchain technology over the next year

The ONC has requested feedback from healthcare stakeholders in order to support the creation of the reporting program. The feedback would help the agency determine the industry's views on various topics.

Using data from 2008-2013, the researchers found a 0.11% increase in mortality rate per function during baseline adoption. By contrast, longer use was associated with a 0.09% decline per year per function, and each new function adopted resulted in a further 0.21% drop in mortality rate.

The health system has reached an agreement with Pipeline Health and TWG Partners, a Chicago-based healthcare investment firm, for the sale of Louis A. Weiss Memorial Hospital, Westlake Hospital and West Suburban Medical Center, along with affiliated facilities.

Some of the reasons the physicians were not enticed according to the study were delayed payments, pay increases which lasted only two years and doctors being mandated to submit documentation to in order to qualify for more funds.

CMS administrator Seema Verma said that the need for federally funded Navigators has diminished. Funding for navigators has been drastically reduced since 2016, when the program was allocated $62.5 million.

The deal is yet another example of vertical integration in healthcare as healthcare companies look beyond their silos to acquire other businesses, forming alliances that can fill gaps in the care continuum.